The National Marine Manufacturers Association says the Supreme Court’s decision to strike down a decades-old political contribution cap could benefit the marine industry.
In a 5-4 ruling on Wednesday, the court ruled that caps on the total amount of money an individual can give to political campaigns, PACs and parties are unconstitutional.
“The ruling may, in effect, allow NMMA’s BoatPAC to do more with the money it has collected,” the NMMA announced in a newsletter. “While the ruling does not change how much money an individual can donate to a PAC, it does change the way in which a PAC can support political parties. The ruling will change the limit on overall campaign contributions, not the individual cap for specific candidates. This will affect political party fundraising.”
Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr., writing for four justices in the controlling opinion, said the overall limits could not survive First Amendment scrutiny, according to The New York Times.
In a dissent from the bench, Justice Stephen G. Breyer called the majority opinion a disturbing development that raised the overall contribution ceiling to “the number infinity.”
